Konohagakure's Kakashi Hatake & Nina Sarutobi have only lived & prepared to die by the Shinobi rules.
Amid an intensive investigation into a spate of mysterious deaths, a birthday party for the elusive Copy-Nin sets off a chain reaction no one quite...
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(Monday> September 22> Amegakure> Inn > Room 302)
~Nina~
Nina dragged in rapid, gasping breaths as her body surged upright. Through the blurring adrenalin rush, her restrained wrists were the first image to come into focus. From her right hand, she dropped a kunai which fell into the puff of duvet between her and Kakashi.
"I..." Nina swallowed, her mouth dry. She frantically searched him for any injuries. "Did I?"
Slowly Kakashi lowered their hands to the space between them. "No harm done." He tepidly rubbed his thumbs over the backs of her hands, a lazy look falling over his eye.
When their eyes met again, Nina passed him a soft smile, a small gesture to say, "I'm fine". Meanwhile, she was mentally scrambling to put her ducks in an orderly line post-night terror and at some ungodly early hour between midnight and dawn.
Kakashi tapped Nina's knuckles twice before letting go of her hands. "Lay down."
"What?" she asked.
Without a reply from the Copy-Nin, she raised an eyebrow, watching as he located her kunai and stashed it under his pillow. He laid down on his side, stretching his long body beneath the covers and grabbed Nina's pillow. After propping his head up with one hand, he patted her pillow he'd positioned between his side and bent elbow with his other hand.
Nina crossed her arms firmly across her chest, willing herself to look from her pillow to his face. "Pervert," she grumbled.
Kakashi groaned, tussling with the bed coverings to sit up more. Despite the lack of adequate light, Nina intently watched how he hooked his fingers around one of her wrists. His fingertips lingered at the exact spot where her racing pulse was sure to be making itself known-just under the arc of her thumb.
It would be easy enough for Nina to pull away and retreat to the bathroom, but maybe this was innocent-all in the name of training. Or maybe he did have some ulterior motive. Perhapshe felt obligated to-
"Lay down, Sarutobi," Kakashi repeated, giving her wrist a gentle tug as he leaned back.
Sincerity was etched into his eye, and Nina stilled. Hana's less-than-sound advice nagged at her insides, stirring with her other thoughts and insecurities.
"Why don't you just let things just...unfold with Kakashi-Sensei? You may be pleasantly surprised."
Unfold.
As if on command, Nina uncrossed her arms, resting them limply in her lap. She pushed back her thumb's cuticle with her other thumbnail; the silence felt deafening and heavy.
"This mission," she exhaled heavily. "I know Lady Tsunade wants me to have a break." Nina lifted her gaze to Kakashi's briefly. "But you fucking know what Ibiki is like, Hatake." She shook her head, hating that she was ranting about a situation she knew couldn't be changed. "I'm just wasting my time here."
